ksmetamaid

I am starting over again with questions about outdoor viewing spaces on Holland America ships, this time on the Noordam. For those of you who answered my question last week about the same topic regarding the Zaandam, thank you. I am keeping track of your comments on that thread. For our Alaska cruise (now looking at the Noordam rather than the Zaandam), we will be booking an inside cabin, which I know isn't ideal, but we've decided to spend our dollars on excursions rather than upgrading our cabins. So I'm very interested in: 1. Which decks have cabins that would have easy access to outdoor viewing, ideally on either side of the ship. One recommendation on the other thread was for deck 4. Anyone else have a suggestion? 2. Are any of these promenades or viewing decks covered in case weather is inclement? One thing I saw on a very old thread about the Zaandam was that at least one of the main promenades was covered, which could be very helpful with Alaska and having an inside cabin. But I haven't heard that yet, at least, about the Noordam. Thanks in advance.

RuthC, your mention of sheltered outdoor space is huge. We need to do an inside cabin for budget's sake, and were looking at the Noordam. Now I'm wondering if we should think about a different ship. That outdoor space is pretty critical for us, and having covered space would be a huge advantage. Looks like the Zaandam only goes round trip from Vancouver, so that's not ideal, either. Any suggestions? I realize your post is several years old, so it won't be fresh on your mind unless you've done more recent Alaska cruising.

Oh good grief. No wonder I've got people confused. We actually changed from looking at the Zaandam Inside Passageway cruise to the Noordam Glacier Discover Cruise. Thanks, rafinmd, for your response, which called that to my attention.

RobTheGob, sounds great, but we definitely have to stick with an inside cabin. That's why I'm really concerned about easy access to the promenades and viewing decks.

Thanks, CruiserBruce. I'm definitely struggling with deck plans. I do see cabins on decks 2 and 3 on the CruiseMapper link listed above, but when I called HAL on Saturday they told me they had no cabins on Lower Promenade or Promenade decks. When I download the deck plans from the HAL website, it doesn't show any on either deck, and when I get to "choose your own cabin" in the online booking process, it doesn't give either as an option. What am I doing wrong? I do plan on eventually using a travel agent, but I'm trying to better educate myself before involving them.

I really loved this lower promenade deck inside cabin suggestion, being able to access either side of the ship easily and without stairs (I have a bit of a knee issue). But according to the deck plan and after calling Holland America, the Noordam has no cabins at all on the Lower Promenade deck. What would be the equivalent on this ship? --Easy access to both sides without stairs?

BTW, CruiserBruce, I should correct my introductory paragraph. Yes, I could see the decks and their floorpans, but nothing outside for viewing. The responses have been helpful.

This is all so helpful! A huge thanks to you all.

We are considering booking an inside cabin on the Zaandam for an Alaska Inside Passageway cruise. I know that's not ideal, but our Alaska trip overall (we have an extensive independent land itinerary as well) is getting expensive and the current thinking is to put more money into excursions rather than cabin. But when I look at deck plans, I basically don't see any decks! Surely that's not right. Could someone who has been on the ship since the 2017 refurbishment please comment? I did find and old discussion on this topic, but would like more recent information. Thank you.

Thank you Elileeshb. I appreciate your research!

AryMay, thank you. My first choice was to see Glacier Bay by water, but I hadn't ruled out a possible flight seeing tour. I just wish it was from some other place than Skagway, since I do have other things I'd like to do there. But this is something to look in to. And I'll check our your blog. Thanks!

Thanks, AKStafford. I'm sure it's wonderful, but it's a little too pricey for us and I don't see Skagway on the itinerary. Plus, I want one-way. Thanks, again, though.

DaveOKC, Celebrity Cruises has an itinerary for 2024 (they haven't published 2025's) that does include both Skagway and Sitka. I was so excited... until I realized it didn't include Glacier Bay. I did call and they said that itinerary will likely stay the same for 2025 and they simply don't do Glacier Bay. 😞

CruiserBruce, yes it seems like all the cruises stop in Juneau, which I'm not all that excited about. I just wondered if it might be possible to spend that day seeing Glacier Bay.